Conformity

    Order Description         WHAT IS CONFORMITY? Define conformity, and compare compliance, obedience, and acceptance. Let us take the last question first. Is conformity good or bad? That question has no sci- entific answer. Conformity is sometimes bad (when it leads someone to drive drunk or to join in racist behavior), sometimes good (when it keeps people from cutting into a theater line), and sometimes inconsequential (when it directs tennis players to wear white). In Western individualistic cultures, where submitting to peer pressure is discouraged, the word “conformity” carries a negative connotation. How would you feel if you overheard someone describing you as a “real conformist”? We suspect you would feel hurt. North American and European social psychologists, reflecting their individualistic cultures, give social influence negative labels (conformity, submission, compliance) rather than positive ones (communal sensitivity, responsiveness, cooperative team play). In Japan, going along with others is a sign not of weakness but of tolerance, self-control, and maturity (Markus & Kitayama, 1994). “Everywhere in Japan,” observed Lance Morrow (1983), “one senses an intricate serenity that comes to a people who know exactly what to expect from each other.” Conformity is the overall term for acting differently due to the influence of others. Conformity is not just acting as other people act; it is also being affected by how they act. It is acting or thinking differently from the way you would act and think if you were alone. Thus, conformity is a change in behavior or belief to accord with others. If you rise to cheer a game-winning goal, drink coffee, or wear your hair in a certain style because you want to, and not due to the influence of others, you are not conforming. But if you do those things because other people did them, that’s conformity. Acceptance and compliance are two varieties of conformity (Nail et al., 2000). Acceptance occurs when you genuinely believe in what the group has persuaded you to do—you inwardly and sincerely believe that the group’s actions are right. For example, you might exercise, as millions do, because you accept that exercise is healthy. You stop at red lights because you accept that not doing so is dangerous. Source: Dave Coverly, The Comic Strips In contrast, compliance is conform- ing to an expectation or a request with- out really believing in what you are doing. You put on the necktie or the dress, although you dislike doing so. You say you like your friends’ favorite band even though you don’t. You might comply primarily to reap a reward or avoid a punishment—for example, you might have followed your high school’s dress code even though you thought it was dumb, because that was better than detention. In other words, compliance is an insincere, outward conformity. Obedience, or complying with a direct command, is a variation on compliance. If your mother tells you to clean up your room and you do, that’s obedience.